Information Package / Course Catalogue
| Political Science and International Relations | |||||
| Bachelor | Length of the Programme: 4 | Number of Credits: 240 | TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 | QF-EHEA: First Cycle | EQF: Level 6 |
Ders Genel Tanıtım Bilgileri
| School/Faculty/Institute | Faculty of Econ., Admin. and Social Sciences | ||||
| Course Code | POLS 222 | ||||
| Course Title in English | Contemporary Political Systems | ||||
| Course Title in Turkish | Çağdaş Siyasal Sistemler | ||||
| Language of Instruction | EN | ||||
| Type of Course | Flipped Classroom | ||||
| Level of Course | Intermediate | ||||
| Semester | Spring | ||||
| Contact Hours per Week |
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| Estimated Student Workload | 136 hours per semester | ||||
| Number of Credits | 5 ECTS | ||||
| Grading Mode | Standard Letter Grade | ||||
| Pre-requisites | None | ||||
| Expected Prior Knowledge | None | ||||
| Co-requisites | None | ||||
| Registration Restrictions | Only undergraduate students | ||||
| Overall Educational Objective | To learn to analyze contemporary political systems from a comparative perspective in order to understand their impact on political life, human wellbeing, and state-society relations. | ||||
| Course Description | This course seeks to understand the origins, major institutions, and current manifestations of political systems from a comparative perspective. In particular, it will study types of democracy, , totalitarian regimes, types of authoritarianism, hybrid regimes, populisms and their impact on regime transitions. The course will offer both theoretical perspectives and case studies to make sense of system trajectories and their broader impact on political life. | ||||
| Course Description in Turkish | Ders, siyasal sistemlerin tarihsel kökenlerini, temel kurumlarını, ve günümüzdeki görünümlerini karşılaştırmalı bir perspektiften anlamaya çalışır. Demokrasinin farklı türlerini, hibrid rejimleri, farklı popülizm türlerini ve popülizmin rejim dönüşümlerindek etkisini, totaliter rejimleri, ve otoriteryanizmin farklı türlerini analiz eder. Bu konulara dair teorik arka planın yanı sıra, vaka çalışmalarından da yararlanarak, siyasal sistemlerin geçirdikleri dönüşümün siyasal hayat üzerindeki geniş etkilerini anlamaya çalışır. |
Course Learning Outcomes and CompetencesUpon successful completion of the course, the learner is expected to be able to:1) understand different types of democracy and authoritarianism, and their repercussions for state-society relations 2) examine the past and present of hybrid regimes 3) analyze different types of populisms and their impact on regime transitions 4) evaluate the current state, problems, and the potential feature of democratic governance across the world |
| Program Learning Outcomes/Course Learning Outcomes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1) Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | ||||
| 2) Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | ||||
| 3) Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | ||||
| 4) Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | ||||
| 5) Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | ||||
| 6) Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 7) Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | ||||
| 8) Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 9) Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | ||||
| 10) Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad |
Relation to Program Outcomes and Competences
| N None | S Supportive | H Highly Related |
| Program Outcomes and Competences | Level | Assessed by | |
| 1) | Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | H | Exam |
| 2) | Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | H | Exam |
| 3) | Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | H | Presentation |
| 4) | Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | H | Exam |
| 5) | Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | S | Participation |
| 6) | Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | N | |
| 7) | Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | S | Participation |
| 8) | Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | H | Participation |
| 9) | Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | H | Exam |
| 10) | Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad | H | Exam |
| Prepared by and Date | BEGÜM UZUN TAŞKIN , December 2023 |
| Course Coordinator | BEGÜM UZUN TAŞKIN |
| Semester | Spring |
| Name of Instructor | Asst. Prof. Dr. BEGÜM UZUN TAŞKIN |
Course Contents
| Week | Subject |
| 1) | Introduction: Regimes, States, Institutions |
| 2) | Defining Democracy |
| 3) | Liberal Democracy and Its Critiques |
| 4) | Social Democracy |
| 5) | Presidential vs. Parliamentary Systems: Which one is more democratic and why? |
| 6) | Totalitarianism |
| 7) | Midterm exam |
| 8) | Authoritarianism |
| 9) | Resilience of Authoritarianism |
| 10) | Hybrid Regimes |
| 11) | A Particular Type of Hybrid Regime: Competitive Authoritarianism |
| 12) | Understanding Populism |
| 13) | Is There a Way Out of Authoritarian Populism?: Prospects for Reclaiming Democracy |
| 14) | Presentations |
| 15) | Final examination period |
| 16) | Final examination period |
| Required/Recommended Readings | Schmitter, Philippe C., and Terry Lynn Karl. 1991. “What Democracy Is… and Is Not,” Journal of Democracy 2 (3 ): 75-88. Kaplan, Seth. 2008. The remarkable story of Somaliland. Journal of Democracy 19(3): 143-57. Recommended: Sen, Amartya Sen. 1999. “Democracy as a Universal Value,” Journal of Democracy 10, ( 3): 3-17. Coppedge, M., Gerring, J., Altman, D., Bernhard, M., Fish, S., Hicken, A., ... & Semetko, H. A. 2011. Conceptualizing and measuring democracy: A new approach. Perspectives on Politics, 247-267. Held, David. 2007. Models of Democracy, 3rd edn, Cambridge: Polity Press, pp: 56-79. "Social Democracy." Britannica Academic, Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 Dec. 2016. ezproxy.mef.edu.tr:2152/levels/collegiate/article/social-democracy/68443. Accessed 4 Feb. 2021. Ryner, J. Magnus. 2002. Capitalist Restructuring, Globalization and the Third Way: Lessons from the Swedish Model. London and New York: Routledge. Pp. 55-78. Linz, Juan J. 1990. "The Perils of Presidentialism," Journal of Democracy 1: 51–69 Horowitz, D. 1990. “Presidents vs. Parliaments: Comparing Democratic Systems,” Journal of Democracy 1(4): 73-79. Arendt, Hannah. The Origins of Totalitarianism. Florida: Harcourt. pp: 460-483. Berman, Sheri Berman. 1997. “Civil Society and the Collapse of the Weimar Republic.” World Politics 49(3): 401-429. Hagenloh, Paul M. 1999. “Socially Harmful Elements” and the Great Terror”. In S. Fitzpatrick (ed.) Stalinism: New Directions London: Routledge, pp.286-303. Linz, Juan J. 2000. Totalitarian and Authoritarian Regimes. London: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Pp. 169-171. Gandhi, Jennifer, and Przeworski, Adam. 2007. “Authoritarian Institutions and the Survival of Autocrats.” Comparative Political Studies 40(11): 1279–301. Bellin, Eva. 2012. “Reconsidering the Robustness of Authoritarianism in the Middle East: Lessons from the Arab Spring.” Comparative Politics 44, no. 2 : 127- 149. Recommended: Tansey, Oisin, Kevin Koehler, and Alexander Schmotz. 2017. “Ties to the Rest: Autocratic Linkages and Regime Survival,” Comparative Political Studies 50(9): 1221-1254. Collier, D., & Levitsky, S. 1997. Democracy with adjectives: Conceptual innovation in comparative research. World politics, 49(3), 430-451. Diamond, Larry. 2002. “Thinking about Hybrid Regimes.” Journal of Democracy 13(2):21-35. Levitsky, Steven and Lucan Way. 2010. Competitive Authoritarianism: Hybrid Regimes after the Cold War, New York: Cambridge University Press. Selected chapters. Bunce, Valierie J. and Sharon L. Wolchik . 2010. “Defeating dictators: Electoral change and stability in competitive authoritarian regimes”. World Politics 62 (1). 43–86. Recommended: Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. 2016. “Rising competitive authoritarianism in Turkey”. Third World Quarterly, 37(9), 1581-1606. Barr, Robert R. 2019. “Populism as a Political Strategy”. In Carlos de la Torre (ed.) Routledge Handbook of Global Populism, London and New York: Routledge, pp: 44-56. Yannis Stavrakakis and Giorgos Katsambekis. 2014. ‘Left-wing populism in the European periphery: The Case of SYRIZA.’ Journal of Political Ideologies 19 (2): 119- 142. Rogenhofer, J. M., & Panievsky, A. 2020. Antidemocratic populism in power: comparing Erdoğan’s Turkey with Modi’s India and Netanyahu’s Israel. Democratization, 1-19. Wuthrich, F. M., & Ingleby, M. 2020. The Pushback Against Populism: Running on" Radical Love" in Turkey. Journal of Democracy, 31(2), 24-40. Diamond, L. 2020. Breaking Out of the Democratic Slump. Journal of Democracy, 31(1), 36-50. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Methods | Flipped Classroom methods such as pre-class videos, group discussions, quizzes, and presentations. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Homework and Projects | Pre-class assignments, group presentation | ||||||||||||||||||
| Laboratory Work | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Computer Use | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other Activities | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Assessment Methods |
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| Course Administration |
taskinbe@mef.edu.tr Attendance and active participation are required. There would be no late presentations, quizzes, and late assignment submissions unless medical report provided. MEF university values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences. Students are subject to Higher Education Council of Turkey’s (YÖK) Disciplinary Regulations for academic dishonesty and plagiarism. |
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ECTS Student Workload Estimation
| Activity | No/Weeks | Hours | Calculation | ||||
| No/Weeks per Semester | Preparing for the Activity | Spent in the Activity Itself | Completing the Activity Requirements | ||||
| Course Hours | 14 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 84 | ||
| Presentations / Seminar | 1 | 12 | 1 | 13 | |||
| Homework Assignments | 3 | 4 | 5 | 27 | |||
| Quiz(zes) | 3 | 3 | 1 | 12 | |||
| Total Workload | 136 | ||||||
| Total Workload/25 | 5.4 | ||||||
| ECTS | 5 | ||||||